Baby Mama Love
by WhtChoc
Summary: Slightly AU. Harry is four months old. Lily and James are his parents but are not together. Yet. When the right man begins to show interest in Lily, James begins to see the ways in which he and Lily are meant for each other. But will it be too late?
1. Chapter One

**Author:** WhtChoc

**Title:** Baby Mama Love

**Summary:** Harry is four months old. Lily and James are his parents but are not together. Yet. When a real man begins to show interest in Lily, it could be the one thing that causes James realize he wants her with him for the rest of their lives.

**Author's Note:** Okay, so—fourth and _last_ time I'm publishing this story. This is it. This is what I've been trying to get out for weeks and now I've finally captured the voice and essence of this story. The concept remains the same: James and Lily have Harry but are not together. The way I've approached this story, though, is clearly different than all the versions I've previously published. I wrote a first chapter in which a lot of different things can happen so I hope everyone appreciates the potential mileage and quality this one story can have. Please review, even if you've reviewed for the other versions. I admit that the publishing and then deleting is highly unusual and must be quite annoying for some of you but I assure you—_this is it._ This is _Baby Mama Love_.

_**Additional note:**_ The first part of this chapter was taken from the last version but then everything that follows is different.

"—But what you _do not_ understand about Quidditch is how exhilarating, how wonderfully freeing it is to be up in the air, _that_ high, just soaring with the Quaffle, y'know, just _knowing_ no one can touch you. _Impossible_. Completely _unbelievable_. And I haven't even _begun_ to talk about all the different plays we're learning this year, y'know? I mean, we've got the Porskoff Ploy—y'know, where I fly real high and I draw out all the opposing Chasers before throwing the Quaffle directly down to Starsky? I know it's hard to follow what I'm—well, maybe you _do_ understand. You had Black and Potter in your year, right?

"Well, never mind that; they never went professional. Although if you ask me, the Caerphilly Catapults could have really used a first round draft pick to sway Black into the Quidditch League. I mean we're talking about the number one team in the British and Irish League of Quidditch taking in a great Beater. Black could have really used that. League Cup champions _eighteen_ times in history and winners of the European Cup, _phew_. Did you hear about that? They beat the Karasjok Kites in the finals in 1956. It was unbelievable! I can only hope that my team plays as well in the semi-finals—

"This is random but I am curious about one thing: favorite sexual position. What is yours?"

Lily choked on her tea. Her hands came up to smack against her chest as she felt her eyes watering immediately. The hot liquid burned in her esophagus and she heaved in a trembling, difficult breath. For a few seconds, she saw the room swim in and out of focus and the lights of the shop she sat in with her date flickered on and off. Her gaze swept to said date and she saw him staring back at her, concern marring his handsome features.

His name was Barry Knightly and if it wasn't already apparent to her before he talked about Quidditch, he was a well-known Chaser from some Quidditch team or another in the British and Irish league. The truth was that Lily hadn't paid attention to Barry for a good part of the last hour because he talked on and on about Quidditch tactics and Quidditch history and Quidditch teams and— for some strange reason, she remembered the Hogwarts school song and she'd been singing it in her head for the last half hour.

For their first date, Barry took her out to Hogsmeade. Further surprising her, he walked them straight into Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop, getting them a table in a corner away from everyone else and then ordering for both of them. She decided she didn't mind the take-charge attitude and went with it. Until he started talking.

Lily cleared her throat. "Pardon?"

Barry placed a hand over her free hand that came to rest on the table between them. "Are you okay? Did I surprise you with my question?"

She breathed in slowly, thinking about his question and contemplating her answer. As she exhaled, she shook her head and said just as slowly, "No. No, I've been—I've been asked crazier questions."

He sighed and squeezed her hand tightly before saying, "Oh, good. It's just, it's been on my mind for the last half hour and I wasn't sure how to make that transition from our conversation about Quidditch to sex. So…"

Lily nodded, shifting her gaze downward to the calloused hand covering her own hand. She swallowed again and forced a small smile upon her lips. Her eyes slowly met Barry's and she answered, "So…"

"What is it?" Barry asked, smirking and still holding Lily's smaller hand.

Lily blinked and her eyebrows raised a fraction. "My—you want to know my—why?"

He shrugged, shifting in his chair. "I don't know. You seem like you're experienced."

Lily slipped her hand from underneath Barry's and coughed into that hand. She forced a lighthearted laugh and said casually, "I do? How?"

He withdrew his hands from the table and leaned back in his chair, shrugging again and glancing away from her this time. "I don't know—"

By the tone of his voice, she understood. "Because I have Harry?"

He was silent at this.

She frowned, trying to keep her tone free of any emotions that might give her hurt and anger away. "Because I have a four-month old son and because I'm available and out on a date, it seems like I'm 'experienced?'"

Barry swallowed and shook his head, looking at her. "Lily—"

"Barry, I have just listened to you talk for an _hour_ about Quidditch this and Quidditch that. About things that have happened in Quidditch _years_ ago and what should happen for Quidditch in the _future_. And because you decided to take us to Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop where I used to go when I was in Hogwarts dating Collin Hamel and _Justin Brady_, I've had to drink tea and I don't even _like_ tea."

Lily pushed her chair away from the table and stood up, shaking her head. "I'm sorry but I have to go."

"Wait, Lily, I'm—"

"Goodnight, Barry."

He reached out and held her hand, effectively stopping her exit. And because she was wired to respond to sexy men, her breath caught in her throat. "Lily, please—I'm sorry for what I just said. Could you just—could you give me another chance?"

Lily met his gaze directly and held it, considering his apology. Her eyes swept over his face and she had to admit, he was _drop_-dead gorgeous. Quidditch served him well as it served many good-looking men—that she knew of—well. His blue eyes pleaded for her to stay with him and she realized that she might have overreacted by planning to walk out on him. But could she really sit through another hour of Quidditch talk?

She nodded and privately enjoyed the way he smiled. He might be boring to listen to but he was real eye candy. And with the responsibilities that she had on a day-to-day basis, she needed that sometimes. "Alright."

He flashed a smile with those white teeth. "Good. I'm glad."

She sat down and settled back in her chair. "So, how often do you—how often do you get to see your family?"

Barry shrugged and said, "Not enough, I s'pose."

There was silence.

"What about—what do you think you would be doing if you hadn't been drafted as a Quidditch player for the league?" Lily asked, acutely aware that after her outburst about his Quidditch talk, Barry didn't seem to have anything else to add to the conversation.

Barry smiled then. "I guess I would try to get a job at the Ministry."

Lily's eyes lit up with surprise. "Really? What Department?"

His smile faltered and his shoulders slouched a fraction.

"The Department of Magical Games and Sports, huh?" Lily nodded knowingly, her hands falling to her lap as she sat back in her chair with defeat. Of course she wasn't going to go home with anyone tonight. It was the curse of being a single mother being set up by her girlfriends. Damn vodka shots and sleeping with James Potter. _Damn—it—all_.

Barry nodded slowly.

"In the…" Lily trailed off, fishing for an answer and already deciding this was as far as she was going to take this date.

He cleared his throat. "Hopefully Chairman or something to the league. But, I mean, there are other avenues of business."

Lily nodded. "Like Level Six, in the Department of Magical Transportation, or um—Level Five, in the Department of International Magical Cooperation. That's where I work. Right in the Magic Office of Law."

Barry shrugged slowly, frowning. "I'm not, uh… not really into law and politics."

"May I ask why not?"

He shifted uncomfortably. "I don't know. I just think—I think life doesn't always need to be so serious. The people on that level are always so—so _dramatic_." He shook his head. "I need to always be having fun."

"My job _is_ fun." Lily said, laughing incredulously. "Just because my work requires me to think and to—to actually _help_ people, what I do isn't fun?"

Barry stared at her, looking like he was trying to figure out a really difficult Arithmetic equation. "Lily, please, I'm not trying to—"

"Barry, can we please just—can we just go now?" Her gaze met his slowly. She was trying to ignore the wall of disappointment that close-lined her because of this date. It was ridiculous to think so but this seemed to signal the end of the era of dating for her and inside, she was shouting with frustration at _it_, the thing that seemed to handicap her from connecting with _any_ guy on _any_ level anymore.

He inhaled deeply and nodded silently. It was obvious he'd been hoping for a more physical connection at the end of the night. Because Lily already decided that she wasn't going to go there with him, he was going to feel like he wasted a night. He wasted his night on a woman with a four-month old son. _Both_ of them were going to feel stupid the next morning.

OooOooO

Lily breathed out carefully as they reached her apartment door at the end of the narrow hallway. She could feel Barry following behind her as her hands fidgeted nervously with her keys. Her heart pounded in her chest and she wondered how she would tell the very good-looking but not-right-for-her man goodnight. Should she just say goodbye and quickly slip into her apartment or should she give him the courtesy of giving him a hug or—

"So, I'm—I'm sorry you didn't have a good time tonight." Barry mumbled.

She turned to him with a small smile plastered on her face. She gave a slight shrug. "No—_no_, I mean, we're just not… I think you need a woman who appreciates your—_zen_ for Quidditch. I'm just—that's not what I'm looking for."

"What are you looking for?" Barry asked, stepping closer to her and crowding her.

Lily's hand grasped the doorknob as she felt her heart beat quicken. Her body certainly couldn't deny that he was attractive. "I'm not sure. I just know that _this_ isn't it."

"It's too bad."

Her gaze slipped to his moistened lips and she unconsciously licked her own lips. "Yeah. Too bad."

His hand came up to touch her shoulder affectionately. "Well, good luck with the—your search on finding the right guy."

He flashed her his perfect white teeth before dropping his hand from her shoulder and leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek. But her body had already been geared from the tender touches he'd been giving her all night. Even though his conversation was boring, even though she knew he wouldn't be the man to provide for her and a four-month old son who wasn't his, her body had different needs. Her head turned just as his lips was about to plant a kiss on her cheek. Instead, they touched her lips and she froze, torn between desire and embarrassment.

It didn't take long, however, before her embarrassment quickly disappeared because Barry responded with such passion that it forced her backward against her apartment door. Her hands immediately wrapped around his neck as she felt his lips, teeth, and tongue bruising her ready lips. Their tongues dueled passionately for several minutes before he pulled away, panting and looking down at her through hooded eyes.

"Are you, uh… are you sure you can't make an exception on your decision for one night?"

Lily leaned her head back against the door, chewing on her lower lip. She weighed her options and situation. The girls were out with their dates. Remus was with Harry at the boys' apartment. James was in Denmark on an assignment. And here she was, with a man who wasn't right for her but felt awfully good _against_ her, asking for a night guaranteed to give her pleasure. There would be no strings attached and it wasn't as though he were asking for anything more from her except great sex.

"What the hell."

And as soon as those words left her mouth, she pulled him to her by the lapels of his jacket. His lips smashed down upon hers as her other hand fumbled with the key in the lock. After jingling the keys in the door, she finally managed to open the door. The door swung open and Barry, with his muscularly built Quidditch body, held her against him as he backed them into the dark apartment in the living room.

His and her jackets fell to the floor immediately, followed by his tie and button-down shirt and her sweater. Her hands fumbled with the belt buckles of his slacks as he sucked his way down from her lips to her neck. She let out a throaty moan as his hands came up to cup one of her breasts through her pink lacy bra. She arched into his hand as he nibbled against the flesh just above her breasts.

"Gods, Lily…" He whispered between his kisses in the valley between her breasts. "You've got so much…"

Her fingers scraped at his scalp through his hair and her hips jerked forward against his. Just as his hands were about to unzip her jeans, the lights came on and the couple jumped apart from each other. Lily whirled around to the sound of someone apparating a couple feet behind her. She swallowed audibly when she saw James Potter standing in her living room, his arms crossed and his jaw tightly clenched.

"James." Her surprise was evident. She wasn't expecting him back from Denmark for another three weeks.

His beautiful hazel eyes seemed to casually sweep over the scene he just interrupted but Lily knew him better than that. His instincts were probably telling him to attack the man who was touching the woman he thought to be his. She could tell by the way his knuckles were white, clutching his toned biceps, that he was fighting the urge to beat the living daylights out of Barry. And he still had the habit of clenching his jaw when he was exceptionally upset but—how much had she really expected him to change? He'd only been gone for the last three months. Of course he would still have the same reactions and habits.

"What are you doing here?"

James's gaze flickered to hers before settling behind her on Barry. He kept his eyes on the man behind her but he spoke to her. "I was sent back early and Dumbledore needed Remus' assistance. Since the girls have no way for Remus to contact them and apparently Sirius has his 'no-babies-on-weekends' rule, I was the only one he could call on short notice."

"Oh."

He nodded briefly and cleared his throat, shifting on his feet and assuming the alpha male standing stance. "What the hell are _you_ doing?"

Lily's eyebrows raised a fraction, challenging his question. "_Excuse_ me?"

"Uh, Lily…" She heard Barry from behind her say softly. "I think I'm just going to—"

"Is that what we're doing now, Lily?" James asked, somehow managing to keep his facial expression fairly controlled.

She flipped her hair behind her shoulders and met his gaze head on, a classic sign of her annoyance. "I don't know, James. What do you think we're doing now?"

The tall Auror stepped closer to the redhead, causing her to stand taller and fold her arms across her own chest. "I think the mother of my four-month old _son_ is bringing home strange men to sleep with. Here, in the apartment that he eats, sleeps, and poops in. And I don't approve."

The last bit shoved her off some sort of cliff. Hot anger bubbled to the surface but she was well too practiced to show it in front of company. Completely unembarrassed about her partial nudity, she turned to Barry who was just picking up his clothes, and she smiled as best she could.

"I'm sorry, Barry." Lily said. "But it wasn't really going to work out anyway."

He held up his hand, nodding continually. He seemed to be mildly intimidated by James. "No, no, it's fine. I completely understand. I'll just—get my things and be on my way."

"Okay then." Lily flashed a smile and waited until Barry hurried out of her apartment before turning back to James who unfolded his arms. "Who the _hell_ do you think you are? Is this some sort of joke? Think this is funny, do you?"

James pointed at the closed apartment door and frowned. "Was that Barry? _Barry Knightly_? The—the famous Quidditch Chaser from—"

"Oh no, no, _no_ you don't." Lily waved a finger in his face, her cheeks burning red. "Don't you _dare_ try to charm your way out of this one. I am—"

"Did Cassie or Andrea set you up with him?" James asked, dismissing her previous comment.

"Andrea." Lily answered automatically.

James grinned mischievously. "He's not the best Chaser in the league, Lily."

"No, but he would argue that Bradley…" Lily stopped abruptly and looked up at James's grinning face. When she realized how quickly he'd gotten her off her angry track, she smacked him across his chest. Before he could see how touching his muscled pecs affected her, she turned away from him and bent down to pick up her clothes. "You're an evil, _evil_ man, James Potter."

"And with evil, _evil_ thoughts." His husky voice said inches away from her ear as she straightened.

Her jaw clenched as she fought the urge to shiver under the implication of his words. Instead, she walked away from him toward her kitchen.

He followed her as she turned on the lights. There wasn't much to the kitchen except for all the necessities. There was a small round table in the corner with a refrigerator to the left just as people entered and a stove straight ahead. For a highly successful woman who had a high paying job at the Ministry as an International Lawyer and part-time Auror living with two of her girlfriends and her four-month old son, she lived rather modestly.

"Really, James, what are you doing back so early?" She asked as she pulled her sweater on over her head and turned to face him. She folded her arms across her chest and leaned against the counter, eyeing him warily. "You're supposed to be in Denmark on an assignment. Why did they call you back three weeks early?"

James motioned with his hands. "Did you do something special with your hair today? You look…"

"James." Lily said in that warning tone she always used with him that told him he was trying her last nerve and either screaming or hexing would ensue if he didn't shape up fast.

"Why does it matter?" James asked, his gaze darkening in that possessive manner that used to have her insides warming with excitement and fear. Now, however, she was more annoyed than anything else about his showing up completely out of the blue. "Disappointed I interrupted your date with _Barry Knightly_?" He laughed, shaking his head. "_Really_, Lily, the guys they're setting you up with now are getting pretty ridiculous, don't you think? He's not even _fifth_ in the league anymore."

Suddenly, Lily pulled out her wand and held it against his throat. "I am _too_ tired for your games." She shook her head briefly. "If you don't want to share why you're back early tonight, that's _fine_. I'm probably too tired to be interested anyways but don't play _this_ game, James." She paused and as an afterthought added, "And thank you for watching Harry tonight."

James watched her closely and she breathed in slowly. She couldn't believe that after eleven years of knowing James, five of those years being friends or in an actual relationship with him, that he didn't seem to want to acknowledge the times when it was appropriate for him to joke with her and when it wasn't appropriate. Out of all the people in the world, he was the one person who _should_ know that. Ironically, he did—but he was also the one person who didn't pay attention to that.

"I heard about the news in the Office of Magical Law." James said quietly.

Lily sighed, lowering her wand and putting it on the counter behind her. He was _also_ the one person who could strip away her will to fight him. "James…"

His hand came to settle on hers. His hand was warmer than Barry's and felt like it—forget _that_. "They didn't give you the promotion."

She flipped her hair behind her shoulder and looked up at him. "No… no, they didn't."

"You are the best person for the job, Lily." James reassured her. "They'll see that when this bloke comes in from the Australian Ministry and messes everything up. They'll see how wrong he is for the job and fire him and hire you."

She laughed, shaking her head. "You haven't been here for three months, James. You have _no_ idea what's been going on."

She watched his jaw tighten and his hand tightened on hers but loosened after a couple seconds. For the first time, he looked tired to her. There was wisdom there, too, in his eyes that hadn't been there before he left. She wondered passively, as they gazed at one another, what in Denmark had caused that in him. It wasn't the troubles of being a father because he barely knew his son, had left on the eve of Harry's first month with the gang. But it had to be _something_.

"I know that you've been working hard for that office for _three_ years. I know that no one does the job better than _you_. And I _know_ Harrison is _eating_ himself right now because he didn't promote you as Chief M.I.L." James said with such conviction that if Lily didn't know the circumstances under which her jackass boss had picked the next Chief Magical International Lawyer, she would have believed him. "Besides, if he's not eating himself on his own guilt and stupidity, I'm sure you made him do all of that when you were there on Friday."

Lily cracked a smile again. "So, Remus told you about it?"

James shook his head, smiling down at her. "Pl_ease_, Lily. I practically grew up with you at Hogwarts rubbing every mistake I made in my face to make me feel guilty and an additional four years _out_side of Hogwarts dating, sleeping, and having a baby with you. Remus doesn't _need_ to tell me you made that bloke's life a living hell when you found out he didn't promote you. It's all up _here_." He pointed to his temple.

"It was rather amusing to see Harrison squirm all day every time I walked into the room." Lily conceded, remembering the fond moments of the last Friday where she had tried in all her will power to make sure Harrison knew how much she disliked his decision.

James frowned. "Any particular reason why he thinks bringing in a guy from all the way across the world will work to bring peace in Magical Law internationally?"

Lily shrugged and answered carefully, "The Australian Ministry has always maintained great relationships throughout the Magical world, of both Wizarding _and_ Creature blood. Harrison believes that David will be a great asset to the British Ministry."

He narrowed his eyes. "David?"

Lily swallowed past her spark of annoyance at James not knowing the details because of his absence. "The new guy coming in from the Australian Ministry."

"Oh." James nodded slowly. "He already has a name."

Lily nodded briefly in confirmation. "He does."

There was silence and Lily ran a tired hand through her hair, only partially paying attention to their conversation now. Her mind was already wandering to what she was supposed to do next, or what she should do. Tomorrow was Sunday and the girls promised that they'd dedicate a good chunk of the day to shopping in Diagon Alley with her while both Remus and Peter would watch Harry. But now that James was here, would he want to spend time with Harry and in that case, did that mean Remus and Peter was off the hook? Would James be able to handle Harry? Who said Remus and Peter were off the hook if James wanted to get to know Harry? Did he even know the first thing about young infants? Should she even go shopping tomorrow if James was back or should she stay home and make sure James knew how to do the basics for Harry?

James cleared his throat, causing Lily's gaze to slowly meet his. "Well, you're probably very, _very_ tired from your _special_ night out…"

Lily straightened and realized that his hand was still on hers when she meant to fold her arms across her chest again. For the strangest reason, she shoved down her urge to do that and kept her hand underneath his, secretly liking the way his thumb continually brushed against the top of her hand in a soothing manner. She cleared her own throat and said, "Very tired, yes."

"And I'm, er, _sorry_ for interrupting." James said not sounding apologetic in the least.

She shrugged though. "Doesn't matter."

"But you have been?" James wondered randomly.

She frowned, really confused. "Pardon?"

"You've been dating." It was a statement, not a question.

She blinked a few times and then finally shrugged again. "I don't know. A date here, a date there. It's nothing big, James. Harry is the most important aspect in my life."

"Alright, because—"

"And you," she interrupted abruptly, "are back from—from your assignment? For how long?"

James shook his head slowly, looking cryptic. "Don't know. But I should be here for a while."

She nodded carefully, watching him. "Okay."

He continued to stare at her. "Okay."

There was a pause before she shook her head and pointed to the way of the door, "Okay, you need to leave now."

He laughed, shaking his own head. "Typical Evans."

"What?" Lily slid her hand from underneath his and _then_ folded her arms across her chest. "What is _that_ supposed to mean, _Potter_?"

"Nothing." James held his hands up as a way of surrender and smiled. "Can I at least have a hug for being gone so long?"

She eyed him warily. It was his way, _always_ his way to somehow get under her skin. And it was his _preferable_ way to ruffle her feathers in such a way that—well, ended up in outcomes like _Harry_. Although she and James hadn't dated in well over a year, she knew he still considered them to be a package and it was obvious to her now that that hadn't disappeared in his absence of three months in Denmark. If anything it had _strengthened_ to an annoying degree.

But, he was the father of her child, a close friend to her girlfriends, and a good guy she had been in love with two years ago, so she opened her arms as an invitation for him to hug her. She caught the mischievous smile on his handsome face but otherwise ignored it and allowed his arms to wrap around her sides to her back. Her own arms wrapped around his neck as her cheek settled against the broad expanse of his chest. Against her ear, she could hear the slow rhythm of his heartbeat thumping and lulling her into a comfortable, relaxed state.

She could feel his chin resting on top of her head and in her hair. He stepped even closer, pressing his long, hard body against hers in such a way that her butt and lower back pressed against the counter behind her. She was too comfortable, though, so when he meant to move away from her, her arms tightened around his neck, hugging him to her. She smiled when she buried her face into his sweatshirt, smelling his fresh clean scent. She was vaguely aware that it was _mildly_ inappropriate to be so forward because, even though he was the father of her child, he was _ex_.

Her smile widened when she felt his nose bury in her hair and his chest expand because he was inhaling the smell of _her_. When his arms tightened around her middle and lifted her slightly in the best hug she'd received in a long while, she unconsciously let out a low moan of pleasure at being held so closely. That was when her eyes opened and he stopped suddenly as well. They slowly disentangled themselves from each other and looked at one another.

"That was…" James started to say but Lily finished for him.

"Inappropriate, I know. I'm sorry." She nodded, cleared her throat and glanced away.

"No." James disagreed slowly. "I was about to say that it was nice and I needed that."

She met his gaze cautiously. "Oh." She swallowed. "How about _um_—how about a quick hug to sort of forget that… or at least what _I_ consider to be an inappropriate hug?"

"Okay."

"Okay." Lily flashed a big smile and stepped into his embrace again, wrapping her arms around his middle this time and feeling his arms rest on her shoulders. There was so much comfort and ease at which James hugged her that no matter how much she tried to fight it, her head found the comfortable spot on his chest and rested briefly. She felt him stiffen a little and seconds later, she felt his erm—_member_ poking into her stomach.

"My god, James, is that _all_ you think about?" Lily teased him, a smile playing on her lips as she looked up at him but didn't remove her head from his chest.

He laughed, shaking his head. "Can't help it, Lily. You're just so adorable…"

She didn't laugh but watched his mouth and the way he smiled. He always had had straight white teeth, even before his teenaged years. He also had full lips and a beautiful, tilted smile because one side of his upper lip curled up higher than the other side. It was always a quirk she had found utterly irresistible about him when they had dated. She could spend hours kissing that mouth and enjoy every second of it. In fact, she _had_ spent hours doing that a couple years ago. After months of carrying their child and then three months of his being gone, the thought suddenly crossed her mind again but she didn't move away from it. Instead, she flirted with the idea of kissing him again.

After his laughs subsided, he seemed to take notice of the way she was looking up at him. She didn't shy away from the darkening of his gaze down at her but stared right back, feeling the familiar pools of excitement and fear wash over her. She greeted it like a long time friend and waited until James saw what she saw. That they were going to kiss again after months of being apart and there was something inevitable about it this time. Maybe it was because they were alone, because Harry was upstairs in his nursery sleeping, because they hadn't seen each other in three months. Maybe all of those things.

"James…" She wasn't sure what she was going to say but James's tongue that came out to wet his lips silenced whatever she would have said.

"Are we really going to do this, Lily?" James asked one of his ridiculous questions again.

She swallowed and tried to shake her head but her head barely moved. "I-I don't know."

"Do you want to do this, Lily?" He asked, his eyes swiveling between her eyes and her mouth. "Because if we do this, baby, I'm not going to be able to stop. I haven't had it in two months so it's likely I'm not going to be very patient."

She frowned deeply, her head beginning to hurt. She was too tired to be confused. "James, I don't know."

"What do you want?" He leaned back further, his hands holding her arms.

She gazed up and saw his darkened hazel eyes glittering with restrained passion. She knew it wasn't fair of her to egg him on but she had her needs too. Since it hadn't worked out with Barry and James was here and clearly attractive and attracted to her, she was beginning to just put away her ration and reasoning. At this moment, she wanted James and he wanted her. That was clear. So that was all that mattered.

"You." Lily whispered, standing up on her tippy-toes so that she was eye level with him. "I want you."

…

Review and let me know what you think honestly!


	2. Chapter Two

**Author:** WhtChoc

**Title:** Baby Mama Love

_Author's Note:_ Thank you very much for the reviews. They were all very generous. Here is the next chapter! Hope you enjoy!

Chapter Two 

Lily awoke to the sound of giggling outside her bedroom door. She rubbed her eyes and glanced at the red digital clock on her small desk. It read 2:19 a.m. It was _way_ too early for there to be any sort of giggling of any kind. Just as she was about to climb out of her queen-sized bed, she felt someone shift against her and then, an arm tightened around her waist. She turned her gaze to see a full head of messy, jet-black hair buried deep within her pillows. A couple seconds later, she let out a low groan as she remembered the night before. She and James…

Yeah.

_Per_fect.

Her bedroom door opened suddenly and she sat up. James's arm slid from its hold around her waist but she didn't concern herself with that. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the light that streamed in from the hallway as one of her best friends, Andrea, gazed into the darkness of the bedroom. Lily clutched at her sheets in nervous anticipation as Andrea slowly walked into the bedroom, squinting for her own eyes to adjust to the darkness.

"Lily? Were you asleep?"

The redhead nodded. "Yes, as we _all_ should be. What are you doing up at this hour?"

"What am I doing…?" Andrea trailed off as she got close enough to see Lily. "Bradley and I just got home from T-97. We were going to go to his place but then, y'know, our place is closer."

Because Andrea was gorgeous and worked as a Mediwitch at St. Mungo's, she met many handsome, available men. And because she worked on the ground level and she dealt with a lot of patients who got hurt from general accidents and common jinxes and hexes, many of those men were Quidditch players and a _good_ portion of them were famous. Bradley Mitchell was one of those famous Quidditch players and he had taken an incredible interest in Andrea over the last four months.

"So, how did your date with Barry go?" Andrea whispered.

Lily wondered if the brunette saw the man lying asleep beside her. "Not very well considering there's another man sleeping in my bed at the present time."

"There's another…?" Andrea started but there was a loud groan beside Lily. The brunette frowned and stepped closer to get a better look at who was sleeping beside her best friend. "Oh." Then it seemed to sink in as she frowned. "_Oh_. Lily, you have a erm— it looks like a… a James is attached to you in your bed."

If only the brunette could see her glaring. "Yes, I am aware."

"That could get compli—"

"Reason why you're in my bedroom, Andrea. _Quickly_." Lily interrupted, motioning with her arms.

"Condoms. I was wondering if you had any left in your bathroom but if you—"

"Top cabinet on the right. Take as many as you want."

Andrea was already walking toward the bathroom when she stopped abruptly. "Oh, but if you and James are going to be needing—"

Besides Lily, James let out an odd noise that sounded an awful lot like a growl. "_Leave_."

Andrea quickly walked into Lily's bathroom and seconds later emerged with the box. She motioned a 'thank you' to Lily and just as she was about to close the door, she whispered loudly, "You, me, and Cassie. Tomorrow. We _need_ to talk."

Lily fell back against the pillows, her arms coming up to cover her eyes. "I am aware."

OooOooO

8:45.

8:49.

8:50.

Lily watched James shift in his waking up ritual. She fought the urge to smile as she felt his fingers walking up her bare arms to her shoulders. He rubbed them briefly before his hands slid under the sheet to squeeze her hips in acknowledgement. His eyes slowly opened, blinking slowly a few times.

"Is it just me," he started in a sexy, velvety voice, "or was Andrea in here last night looking for condoms?"

Lily chewed on her lower lip, her eyes gazing at the far wall. "No… it's, um—it's not just you."

James groaned, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "_Great_. I'm back less than twenty-four hours and I'll get the talk."

She fixed him with a dark look. "Excuse me?" _He_ would get the talk? "Um—I'm a little tired and confused from last night's activities but I'm pretty sure the questioning eyes will sail right over you and land right on me, thank-you-very-much." She pulled the covers back and stepped off her bed, walking to her door and pulling off the robe hanging on the hook. Without paying any attention to her nudity, she turned around to James as she covered herself securely with the comfortable material. "Typical Potter."

James sat up slowly and frowned. "What about me is so typical to you?"

"_This_. You coming back here and knowing—no, _thinking_ you know… you know what? _Everything_." She stopped abruptly upon seeing James's deepened frowns and she halted her wild rant. She folded her arms and leaned against her bedroom door, her eyes lowering to the carpeted floor. "So, what's the plan?"

The father of her child shrugged. "This isn't the first time it's happened—"

Anger boiled immediately in her system. "For _who_?"

His hazel eyes grew cautious as they swept to meet her gaze. "Us…"

All right. It wasn't an insult… "True. We have made stupid mistakes together before."

She thought she saw irritation flash in his beautiful orbs but when she looked a second time, it was gone. Or maybe she imagined it. The truth was that she and James actually hadn't committed many stupid mistakes together in a long time. Maybe Lily and James sleeping together and subsequently Lily getting pregnant were mistakes but it certainly didn't turn out to be a _stupid_ one. Harry was the most important person in Lily's life and she wouldn't give him up for anything. But—in all honesty, that was it. There weren't many recent situations where James and Lily could be alone to make mistakes…

"Who says we have to explain our motivations for sleeping together to anyone except ourselves?" James questioned, folding his arms across his bare chest and looking thoughtful. She couldn't shake a bad case of déjà vu. She was accustomed to seeing the frown marring his handsome features, as she knew his mind raced. She had seen it so many times at Hogwarts when the boys were planning another late night adventure or prank on the school population.

Lily shook her head of past times and rolled her eyes, answering his hypothetical question anyways. One of them had to be realistic. "You know Andrea and Cassie? My friends? _They_ do."

James's face fell. "Yeah, and Sirius, Remus, and Peter will want the details—"

Her eyes widened in surprise.

He caught that. "—Which I won't be dispelling any whatsoever." He cleared his throat. "Do you… do you regret any of it?"

Lily pushed away from the door and came to sit on the edge of her bed. "I think—I think we have too much _history_ for it to be a regret, don't you think? I mean, as long as… _you_ don't regret it then I'm fine with just putting it away as a—as a momentary lapse of… control." She emphasized the last letters of the word 'control' and eased back against the pillows next to him, crossing her legs out in front of her. "You are the father of my child and—and I _definitely_ prefer you to _Barry Knightly_—"

James laughed, shaking his head.

"—But we've gone through this before and we've handled it well."

James nodded. "This is true."

"Just our—our _different_ way of saying hello." Besides, she had long given up the idea that there was _just_ sex with James. She knew they both considered it to be more but she also knew that they both were stubborn as hell to admit their feelings toward one another, despite them having a baby together. She and James fit but somehow weren't meant to be together in the long run. She had accepted that when he was able to walk away from her after she had their baby.

"That's an ideal way to think about it."

Lily shrugged. "I thought so."

"Alright." He leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to her cheek. "Hello, Lily Evans."

She felt his lips linger on her skin and she shut her eyes tightly and nearly stopped breathing. Her heart rate accelerated and when he pulled away, she fought to hold onto _some_ ounce of control. They were allowed to sleep together his first night back but he wasn't allowed to see the strange effect he still had on her when he innocently kissed her on her cheek like he used to when they were actually a couple.

"So, what are you and the girls doing today?" James asked as he stepped out of her bed and leaned down to pull on his boxers.

She shrugged carelessly. "Girl stuff, I s'pose."

He shot her a lopsided grin that made her stomach dip slightly. She was always most attracted to James in the morning when they first woke up. She should have remembered that. But then again—it was only three months ago that she had last seen him. Which brought her back to—

"Hey, are you ever going to tell me why they sent you back early?" Lily asked. "I don't think they've ever done that to you before."

James seemed to busy himself with pulling on his jeans and button down shirt. "It's, uh… it's kind of a long story."

She frowned, wondering why he was so reluctant to share his information with her. "Oh?"

"Yeah, I mean, I'd only—"

Harry could be heard at that moment crying in the next room.

Lily cursed under her breath before she jumped out of bed and motioned with her arms. "So sorry but… he's… well, I need to go in there. He's not used to waking up alone."

James nodded and shrugged. "That's fine. Um…"

She watched as he struggled with his next words. She was almost about to comment that she was running out of patience and that she really needed to go get Harry when he said, "Do you need any help? I mean—he is my son and I haven't really—"

"Whatever you're comfortable with, James. You don't have to if you don't want to." Lily had time to say before she practically ran out of the room to tend to her four month old as he screamed for having woken up alone without his mother.

OooOooO

It had taken Harry all of ten minutes to calm down after Lily rushed into his nursery. She had held him tightly to her chest, apologizing over and over for not having been there when he awoke. She had _always_ been there when he woke up in the morning because she was fortunate to have a good baby that went to sleep at a certain time and woke up at around the same time the next morning. And so she always woke up about a half hour before nine o'clock so that she could get some tea and get ready for her day.

But because James, Harry's father, made his swift entrance back into their lives unexpectedly, she briefly had forgotten about their son's reliable wake-up time. She couldn't really forgive herself, even as she walked carelessly around Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions store. A store she could always rely on to make her feel even just a _little_ bit better. You see—the plan was to buy a few new robes for her job Monday morning so that she looked professional and _good_. Then, hopefully, her new _Chief_ would feel guilty because he would see how wonderful she was and leave, but _not_ leaving without suggesting to Harrison that she really was the best person for the job. Then, Harrison would walk into her semi-private office and beg for her to be the Chief M.I.L.

Yep. That was the plan.

She sighed.

But what if her plan didn't work? What if David Laurie really _was_ the best man for the job? Then Harrison would be right and Lily _hated_ when that happened. She and her boss had a long-standing love-hate relationship and it was only hate because they butted heads so many times during the job. He was her boss but because she had basically been there since after her graduation from Hogwarts, choosing the life of a lawyer over the life of an Auror or a Healer, he allowed her leeway on most of her cases. Unlike other I.L's in the office, she actually got to choose her cases, which was what every international lawyer wanted, what they dreamed of achieving.

Despite her recent attempts at aggravating her boss, she admired what Harrison stood for best of all. During her time at the Office and with Harrison's guidance, she learned to be a stronger, more effective speaker while handling her cases. There was a certain quality about her middle-aged boss that reached out to her and encouraged her to be in command of those on the receiving end of her case. In the end, she always felt more in control of the vehicle, so to speak, than most lawyers in the Office and so she could navigate where she wanted things to end up, what results would become of certain aspects in law.

But this David Laurie—

"Lily, seriously," Cassie, another best friend of Lily, started, "You've been eyeing that robe for ten minutes straight. If you like it so much, let's buy it and head out."

Lily rolled her eyes at her dirty blonde haired friend. Cassie was definitely the boldest, most brutally honest friend of their trio. She was also the 'sporty' girl, as she had always been severely interested in Quidditch. She followed all the teams in the British and Irish League and had even played as a Chaser back at Hogwarts for Gryffindor House. Men often labeled her as the 'sporty chick with the killer bod.' And she was, Lily supposed, but Cassie was more passionate, more _brain_-intelligent than most men seemed to think of her at first.

"She has to pick out the right robes, remember?" Andrea said, her eyes gazing around the store.

"I don't know…" Cassie shook her head, folding her arms. "They all looked the same to me eleven years ago, they look the same to me still. I honestly don't see a difference between one robe and another robe. Except for maybe the color and the length. How you two can distinguish one from another is way beyond me."

Cassie was Muggle-born like Lily, except she had been shipped all the way from the States to go to Hogwarts. Even though Cassie had a funny accent _and_ she was Muggle-born, it still had taken her all of five minutes to find her place at the Magical school. And her popularity only increased when she began her obsession with Quidditch.

"Well, young blood…" Andrea drawled on sarcastically.

Lily didn't have to turn her head away from the racks of robes to know that Cassie was glaring at the brunette. Instead, Lily answered with a sly grin, "There are _casual_ robes. You'll find that often in the Hogsmeade area, that is the popular form of wear. And here, as we shop in Diagon Alley, my friend, you'll often see what is called _dress_ robes. _That_ is what I am looking for."

Andrea laughed, throwing her head back. "Honestly, Cassie, it doesn't matter. As long as you know the difference between those two, everything is fine. _We've_ been telling you that for years and Lily is Muggle-born just like you."

Cassie waved the comment away with a swish of her hand and looked around. "So, what's the story with this new Chief coming in?"

Lily rolled her eyes but answered anyways. "Guy from Australian Ministry coming to work in the British Ministry. Supposedly very, very good. Have to meet him tomorrow morning. He'll be one of my new bosses."

"Oh, and what about Harrison?"

"He's still my boss." Lily replied nonchalantly, pulling out a dress robe she liked. "But, he's like—the C.E.O, or the owner of our craft, and David will be the general manager or supervisor of sorts. It's not that complicated if you think of it in terms like that."

"David, huh?" Cassie grinned. "That's kind of a sexy given name, don't you think?"

Lily sent the blonde a dirty look and watched as her friend recoiled from the look.

"What? It sounds kind of—well, it sounds like he'll be, erm, _promising_."

"Cassie, we don't think the evil Australian man's name is sexy." Andrea advised slowly and continued upon Lily's nod of approval, "_Especially_ since said Australian man is taking Lily's desired position."

"_Oh_." Cassie paused before saying, "Well, I just wanted to know because Xander wanted to do a cover story on that whole… that thing. So, if you could just give me the thumbs—"

Lily groaned. "Cassie, you know that I can't do that. Last time Xander wanted thumbs up, I gave it to him and I ended up getting hell from Harrison for not asking him first. You'll have to go through Harrison to get the interview. And he may say no. Especially when this David guy is new."

Cassie worked at the _Daily Prophet_ and although she worked as the reporter for the Sports section, she knew almost everyone in every department. Xander Cullen, a very nice, very likeable guy their age, worked practically under the editor of the entire paper. He was a hard-worker and often went to the city club, T-97, with the gang on Friday nights after work. He had also had crushes on all three girls at one point or another but his most recent crush, everyone seemed to think, was on Lily. So there were other motivations for Lily not accepting the option for an interview on the recent addition to her Office team.

As they walked to the counter to pay for Lily's robes, Cassie fixed Lily with a scrutinizing stare. The redhead smiled politely at Madam Malkin as the older woman made small talk with the three women. Lily tried to ignore Cassie's questioning gaze as she took the bags from the counter and waved a friendly goodbye to Madam Malkin before walking out of the shop out onto the Diagon Alley streets.

"You've been awfully stressed out about work recently." Cassie observed casually, but Lily knew her better than that. This was leading to something. And Lily was determined not to go _there_ today. "Does it _really_ have anything to do with the fact that I walked into your bathroom this morning and James was in there taking a shower?"

Lily felt a blush creep up her neck. "Would you _really_ believe me if I said he slept on the couch and I said he could use my bathroom this morning?"

Cassie looked stern. "_Well_, considering that I came home last night to find _no_ Marauder sleeping on our couch and Andrea told me you two slept together, probably…_not_."

Lily smacked Andrea on the shoulder as they made their way further down the street. "You _told_ her?"

"It was fairly obvious." The brunette said, not looking in the least bit guilty. "His cloak was hung up on the hanger in the front hallway _and_ how many times did you two actually do it last night?"

Lily felt herself turning red.

"I mean, _after_ I came in to ask for condoms?"

They stopped at a set of picnic tables in a tented area that connected to a small restaurant and settled down.

"Seriously, Lily," Cassie shook her head, "Are you sure it's the best idea?"

"Why isn't it?" Lily asked, her ears burning. "We talked about it and we're both fine."

"I'm not _saying_ anything." Cassie said. "I'm _asking_ you. And if I say anything, it will only be to state that everything seems to be all right and you two have Harry. And I would hope that you guys make decisions based on what's in the best interest of Harry. And _not_ do anything stupid."

"Well, you know," Lily started, biting her lip thoughtfully, "James and I _always_ try to come up with new and inventive ways in which we can do things that are stupid so that I get talks like _these_."

"Mm…" Andrea pointed at Lily. "Like sleeping together."

"That was—a hello." Lily couldn't help but blush at the words that she and James had used earlier. She swallowed when her girlfriends rolled their eyes and so she cleared her throat. "For us."

"Wasn't he supposed to be gone longer than this?" The brunette frowned.

Lily nodded silently.

"So, why is he back so early?"

Lily shrugged, still silent. She wasn't willing to share with them yet that he still hadn't told her. It would only add to their evidence.

"Well, supposedly, he's back to work at the Ministry on Level Two tomorrow morning. Strictly desk work." Cassie said matter-of-factly. "So, if that's any indication, it probably means he was strongly advised to leave his case."

Andrea's frown deepened. "Has that ever happened to him before?"

"No," Lily answered quietly, "it's never happened to him."

"So, we know something happened with that…" Cassie said. "And now, it seems he's free to get to know his son."

Andrea looked at the redhead, concern etched in her beautiful face. "How do you feel about that, Lily?"

Lily swallowed and shrugged helplessly, many thoughts swirling around in her head about what that could mean, what having James back for an indefinite amount of time could _actually_ mean. Would it work? Harry was his son, too. He had a right to get to know him as Lily had gotten to know Harry over the last four months. Would he be capable? Would he even _want_ to? What would that mean for _them_, spending more time together?

She opened her mouth to speak and she found herself saying, "I have no idea. I honestly—I honestly don't know."

OooOooO

_A/N_: What'd you think? Let me know!


	3. Chapter Three

**Author:** WhtChoc

**Title:** Baby Mama Love

Chapter Three 

Lily had time to Apparate to Remus' apartment building Monday morning before she was to be in for work at eight o'clock. Because she had done this so many times before in the last four months, she didn't think about knocking on his door and instead just invited herself in. She shut the door and turned. She was surprised (though, if she thought about it later, she shouldn't have been) to see James lounging on the couch with his feet up on Remus' coffee table, flipping through CDs Lily had encouraged Remus buy and listen to in his spare time.

"James." Lily breathed, her heart rate increasing. His appearance in his best friend's living room shouldn't have shocked her but the truth was, she wasn't expecting to see him this early in the morning. Besides, no one had told her that he planned to set up camp in _Remus' _apartment. She thought Sirius would be the one to—

"Sirius is supposed to be moving things around in his apartment." James nodded to her in acknowledgement, obviously getting that she was surprised of his presence. "Plus, with the company he's been keeping over the weekend, you can understand that I'd rather much be here than there."

Lily nodded briefly, understanding. Sirius had met a woman he enjoyed very much and she had spent the entire weekend with him. Though James accepted that side of his long-time friend, he had never been one to be a part of that. Despite his own reputation as a 'ladies' man', he was less so than Sirius. Women were very attracted to James but they never threw themselves at him the way they often did at Sirius, and if one or two tried, it was usually strongly discouraged. It was one of those things that when she thought about it, she came to like that she had fallen for James instead of Sirius.

"But Remus stepped out for a few minutes. He should be back soon." James said, grinning at her.

She nodded again and swallowed. Her hands nervously smoothed her robes as her gaze swept over the small flat. There was a living room right in front of her where James sat and to her left was the hallway that led to the two bedrooms and bathroom and on her right was the cozy kitchen and a rather large storage closet. She always complimented Remus on how well kept his flat always seemed to be.

"Do you… do you make these trips often?" James asked.

Lily shrugged. "Week days when I know I'll be at the Office kind of late."

James remained silent as he nodded and stood up from his spot on the couch. He put the CDs back in their cases and pulled on a hooded sweatshirt before walking around to brisk past her into the kitchen. She stood there for a moment before deciding to follow him there. When she entered Remus' small kitchen, she saw James preparing tea. She leaned against the doorway with folded arms and watched as he went to work in silence.

"And Remus helps you… with Harry." James continued as a delayed response to her earlier statement.

"Well, yeah." Lily said, not knowing where he was going with this conversation. "Remus is the only one of all of us who doesn't hold a job, except for his occasional assignments from Dumbledore. He enjoys watching Harry while I'm gone. Besides, it's a lot easier than hiring a—"

"Relax, Lily," James turned to her with a big grin spread across his arrogant face, "I was just asking."

"Well, you make it seem like Remus is forced to do this for me, _which he's not_." Lily felt her temper rising, which was not good this early in the morning when she was about to head into a possibly more angering situation at work.

"All I asked was whether Remus helped you with Harry, that's all." He frowned after a second. "Work must really be upsetting you."

Lily sighed, pushing away from leaning against the door and going to sit at the round kitchen table. "Don't make _this_ about _that_. You know I know when you're digging. Just admit it."

James stared at her silently before giving up and nodding. "Alright, alright."

She smiled a little. "See? Three months doesn't change a thing."

"But you're right only to an _extent_." He pointed at her. "I just—I don't see why you need to be completely depending on Remus to watch over Harry all the time if I'm here."

Her smile faded upon hearing that and she shifted in her seat, clearing her throat. Her gaze fell away from his and onto the patterns of the table. Of course they would have this conversation and because it was James, they would have it when _he_ wanted to have it. He couldn't just wait until after this stressful day was over; he had to start it at the beginning. When she finally looked up at him, she realized he had his back turned to her again and he was pouring tea in two mugs. She watched as he set the mugs on the table and sat down beside her.

"I mean, I am his father and I am going to be here for a while." James pointed out, taking a sip out of his mug while gazing at her from over the top of the rim. "And I haven't exactly been a bad father—"

"James, you haven't been around for us to actually see you _be_ a father." Lily said before she could stop herself.

"I was here for his first month."

"Congratulations." Lily replied dryly. "You got to stand around like everyone else as Harry slept on me twenty-four hours a day—"

"He didn't sleep twenty-four hours a day—"

"—And when he wasn't sleeping, you got to still stand around and watch him feed." Lily finished with a dark look. "And by the time his second month came around when I could have actually used the help and been able to catch up on some sleep myself, you had already taken the assignment Moody had given you and off you went. For _three_ months. Congratulations on being a ter_rific_ father."

James seemed to be speechless as he sat there and watched her drink from the mug of tea.

She didn't feel compelled to say anymore, or even look at him. She wasn't as angry with him as she came out to be. Some of her stress had to do with what her day seemed to look like but some of it wasn't. Some of what she said rang true within her and she felt that she made sense. Of _course_ she wasn't going to immediately trust James with Harry, just like that, just because he was Harry's father. Was he out of his mind? He would have to prove to her that he knew what he was doing, that he could be trusted, that there was some kind of longevity to his supposed commitment to getting to know his son.

"How can I show you that I can be a good father?" James asked quietly.

Lily glanced at him and saw that he was genuine. Though James was very skilled at concealing his thoughts and feelings from the rest of the world, Lily could tell when he was passionate about something, when he truly cared. She sighed and shrugged. "I think you telling me why you're back so early would be a preferable start."

James's gaze darkened as he looked at her. He obviously thought that she was just using her leverage to get that information from him. Obviously, he was only _half_-right.

"Listen, first, I need to know that you'll actually be here for a while—"

"I told you I would be." James interrupted but she held up a hand.

"—And secondly, it's only fair." She chewed on her lower lip. "You know what's going on here. Just tell me the _gist_ of why you were sent back three weeks early."

"The enemy got to me." James said shortly, his jaw clenching furiously.

Lily frowned in confusion. "The enemy got to you? That's it? That's all you're going to give me?"

His chest heaved up and down as his eyes darkened to a deep brown, almost black. It unnerved her only a little bit because his eyes were usually a very pretty hazel color but she knew that when he was terribly upset or distraught, his eyes turned that dark color. He seemed to weigh in on his options carefully before he gave a brief nod of his head.

Lily tilted her head, hoping to get a little bit more out of him. "What enemy?"

He tilted his own head and leaned closer to her so that his face was only inches away from hers. She felt his breathing on her cheek as he whispered, "What do you think?"

She opened her mouth to reply but the sound of someone Apparating in the living room caused her to jump in surprise. She had been so wrapped up in the intensity of James's eyes that she had almost forgotten about Remus returning so that she could make sure he was all set with taking care of Harry for the day. She watched James stand from the chair and she, herself, stood and walked past him out of the kitchen.

She smiled upon seeing Remus who threw his jacket on the back of the chair. "Remus, sweetie, how are you this morning?"

Remus returned her smile. "I'm well. Is Harry all set to spend the day with me?"

"That's what I came here to ask you." Lily said, ignoring the fact that she knew James was behind her with those same dark eyes. "You're okay if I'm a little late at the Office tonight, right?"

"Absolutely." Remus answered easily. "And James even offered to get out of work early today to help out so I'm sure it won't be a hassle."

Lily slowly turned to James who leaned back against the front door, crossing his arms and looking smug. "So, you're helping out today?" She swallowed as he nodded briefly. She clenched her jaw tight from saying anything rude to him in front of Remus (though even Remus was well-experienced in the arguments James and Lily had on a daily basis when they were around each other) and instead turned back to their friend with a polite smile. "That's great. It'll be so much better for me today if I know everything's under control."

"Of course." Remus waved away her comment. "If there's any way we can make this day go a lot smoother for you, we'll do it."

Lily smiled nervously and glanced back at James who still had that smug expression on his face. If only Remus wasn't there so she could slap that look right off his face… "Thank you. But I should definitely be going because Harrison wants the entire team to be there eight o'clock sharp for David's initial appearance."

"Don't let us keep you." James said as she turned toward him, flipping her hair behind her shoulder and fixing him an annoyed look. He held the door open for her. "And please don't hurt anyone while you're on the job."

She narrowed her eyes and walked to the doorway but stopped in front of him and asked him in the sweetest voice she could, "Shouldn't you be getting ready for your desk job on Level Two, James?" She definitely got a thrill that ran through her when she saw his jaw clench beneath his skin. She smirked victoriously before practically gliding out of Remus' flat, her hips swinging generously because she knew he was staring at her.

"Later, boys."

OooOooO

Lily froze when she entered her semi-private office.

She first noticed that her papers were stacked in neat piles and some of her cases had even been organized and put into folders. She frowned as she stepped closer to her desk and ran her fingers along the mahogany surface. Where there was usually dust, she found none. Not to mention the magical blinds she had put up for herself were drawn back and revealed a beautiful sunset on some ocean she wasn't familiar with. Where she was usually greeted by the Wales countryside, she saw sand and ocean.

Her overly large chair swung around and she jumped back, scared for the second time that morning when she saw a man she had never met before sitting comfortably in her chair and fixing her with a disarmingly charming smile.

He made a friendly gesture and said in a familiar British accent, "Hello, you must be Lily Evans. I'm David Laurie, your new boss."

Her heart still pounded in her chest as she watched him swing her chair around and stand up. He was tall and well built. He wasn't wearing Wizard robes and instead, looked very handsome in dress pants, shoes, and a button down shirt. He looked like he was a Muggle but Lily knew better than that. As he came to stand in front of her, she had to crane her neck to meet his gaze.

He shook her hand with that charming smile still on his face and even laughed when she didn't immediately offer any information of herself. "I was told that this was your office but I still wasn't sure. The other lawyers mentioned that you had amazing red hair and beautiful emerald eyes but I thought that they were just kidding. Apparently they weren't."

If Lily could open her mouth to actually say something, she might've questioned his implications, being that he was her boss and such commentary was actually unprofessional. But staring into handsome blue eyes seemed to do something to her that she had only once before been familiar with. A certain pair of hazel eyes swam into her brain and that was when she finally could find her voice.

"You can't be David Laurie." She managed to say.

His eyebrows rose. "Pardon?"

"Well," she began slowly, "David Laurie, my new boss, is from Australia and you don't have an Australian accent. Therefore…"

She trailed off when he smiled widely at her, nodding and pointing at her as if to say she was clever.

"Why are you smiling at me like that?"

"Harrison said that you had keen observation." He shook his head and laughed. "We'll definitely need that on the cases I have lined up for us. Actually, the reason I have a British accent is because I was born right here in London and was raised by my mother until I was fifteen. After that, we moved to Australia."

She stared dumbly at him. "Harrison said…"

"Yeah, and he also said you were stubborn as all get out." He winked at her as he leaned against her now polished desk. "I guess I'll have to see if he's right about that, too."

"So, you're my new boss?" Lily asked, frowning.

David's smile wore off slightly but he still maintained a friendly (and handsome) appearance. "Yes, will that be a problem?"

She laughed, almost hysterically, as she walked around her desk and placed her bags for the day on her chair. She looked at him as he turned on her desk to face her. "Why would—why would that be a problem?"

He shrugged as if he didn't have a care in the world. And he looked pretty darned sexy when he didn't have a care… "Harrison said something about you being a little… bitter."

"I'm not…" She snorted but upon his raised eyebrows, she stopped herself. "I'm _happy_ that Harrison has found someone whom he presumes to be the right person for the job. I will show nothing but respect and gratitude for his decision."

"Alright but…" He started to shrug again and Lily actually started to find that annoying.

"'Alright but' what?" Lily folded her arms across her chest.

"It just sounds like you're trying to persuade yourself of that."

_Ooh_—the _nerve_. "Excuse me?"

He jumped off her desk and faced her, putting his hands in both pockets. "You want my job."

She could only gape at his audacity. Her blood boiled in her veins. "What?"

"And that's fine because I came in here to offer you a proposition, an offer of sorts." He continued.

"You came in here to…" She trailed off dumbly again.

He laughed. "Yeah, are you sure you can hear alright? That's the second time you've—"

"I can hear fine." She snapped and he looked, for a moment, surprised. In a softer, calmer voice, she said, "What kind of an offer?"

"Well," he started slowly, walking around the desk to stand directly in front of her and causing her to lean her head back so she could meet his gaze again, "I intend to start work here as soon as possible. I'm looking for a sort of partnership and so I asked Harrison whom he thought would best fit the bill. He and many others pointed confident fingers your way and so here I am. Lily, I would like you to work with me on a case dealing with the fair treatment and equal rights of werewolves within the British Ministry."

_That_—was unexpected.

For as long as Lily Evans had worked in the Office of Magical Law, she had fought to work on cases to do with the harsh treatment and equality issues towards werewolves. Because she had a best friend who _was_ a werewolf and because she believed, especially in knowledge of her being a Muggle, that everyone within the Magical world deserved equal rights, no matter their blood status; it was her passion, her eventual _dream_. This was the opportunity of a lifetime for her. This was what she had wanted for the three years she had worked in the Office.

And it was a lot to take in, it shocked her so.

"Are you in there?" David waved a hand in front of her face.

Lily swallowed, though her throat was dry. "Wow, it's—it's definitely a lot to take in."

"Well, I needed to be sure first. Harrison disclosed certain information to me about you."

Her eyes were on guard again. Even though no one in the Ministry knew, beyond her equal rights talk, exactly why she was passionate about the case, she still felt defensive. "What information?"

He shrugged in that careless way. "Just that you've really wanted to do this case for as long as you've been here and that you're the best lawyer he's got on the team. This case, of course, would be kept under wraps, for obvious reasons. We don't want the British Ministry in upheaval because of its newest member causing trouble."

Lily nodded, understanding that completely. Of course they would need to work in private. Though other Ministries had recently accepted certain creatures back into their every day lives, the British Ministry was _severely_ strict about things like that, even going so far as to not allowing half-bloods the chance to earn a living. That was why Remus was the only unemployed person in her group of friends. He was _forbidden_ to do any kind of work under British Magical law.

"So what do you say?" David smiled hopefully.

She breathed in and out in silence for a few seconds before she asked, "Does Harrison know?"

"Of course." David dismissed the question with a wave of his hand. "It's a highly dangerous case and if anyone found out we were working on it before we were ready to present it on the stands, it could destroy reputations, the chances for re-employment… you know, basically, people involved would be screwed."

"So, you're willing to risk _my_ career—?" Lily started but David shaking his head stopped her.

"Please, no, don't look at it like that." He took a deep breath and said, "It's a dangerous risk and I'm asking you because I was told you were the best woman for the job and you seemed to care an awful lot about this case. And that's exactly what I'm looking for. The skills needed and the passion to drive things home."

She could easily see why he was amazing at his job and why Harrison picked him. He was naturally persuasive and there was an ease about him that instantly made people comfortable around him. People were probably tempted to let their guards down and open up to him. Not to mention he had the warmest blue eyes…

"I'll have to think about it first." She found herself saying.

He nodded, stepping back. "Naturally. It's definitely a decision that can't be made in five minutes. I apologize for pushing." He paused before finishing, "I'll be in my new office when you've made your final decision."

Lily smiled for the first time in his presence and she enjoyed the way he seemed to enjoy her smiling. He walked to exit her office and before he left, she said, "Thank you… for presenting me with this opportunity."

He smiled kindly before exiting and leaving her to think about her answer.

OooOooO

Lily entered her flat later that evening to the sounds of noise. She closed the door and turned to see her entire group of friends lounging about in the living room of the downstairs area. She gave a tired smile when they all turned to look at her in expectance.

"So, am I going to be the first one to ask how your day went?" Cassie wondered aloud.

Lily kicked off her shoes and went to sit down beside Sirius who wrapped an arm around her comfortingly. "It was… different."

Sirius pressed a brotherly kiss to her forehead before asking, "In what way was it different?"

Andrea, from sitting on the floor, scooted closer to Lily and patted her knee affectionately. "Yeah, you have to tell us some detail. We _have_ been hearing your worries for the last six days."

"Well," she started slowly, "I met my new boss, David, today."

"How was it?" Remus asked, glancing between her and James who was preoccupied with bouncing Harry on his knees.

"Can you bear being in the same room with him?" Cassie asked, concern marring her features.

Lily nodded slowly. "I think I can. He, uh—he sort of offered me a high-risk job. Probably the biggest he has lined up."

"Wow, that's great." Remus said, beaming proudly.

"Yeah, it'll definitely take up all of my time at the Office. He said we'd probably even have to meet once or twice on the weekends sometimes." Lily said.

"Whoa, that _is_ big." Sirius said, sounding surprised. "What is it?"

Lily stopped leaning on Sirius and straightened. "It's a case none of you guys can talk about. Not outside these walls."

They all nodded.

"David and I are going to be working on ways in which we can bring to the British Ministry stands the issues of fair treatment and equality for werewolves within the government." She said and wasn't surprised to see everyone in the living room gaping at her. "I know, I know. It's a big, big case and if anyone ever found out about it, I could be fired and my life would basically be over but guys, this is… this is huge for me and I would really appreciate it if—"

"Honey, that's great!" Cassie broke out into a big smile.

Lily frowned. "Really? I thought you guys would—"

"No, it's what you've always wanted, right?" Andrea leaned forward to hug her briefly.

Sirius punched her affectionately on the arm. "Congratulations, Evans."

She blushed in embarrassment. "Thanks." She looked at Remus who'd been quiet. "So, what do you think? I mean, you're part of the reason I took the case…"

Remus smiled. "I think its amazing and thank you."

She nodded and looked at James who was still bouncing Harry on his knees but smiling warmly at her. She blushed deeper with the way he was looking at her but something seemed to tug at her memory when she looked at him. Then she remembered and the happy feeling went away. But she knew they would _kill_ her if she didn't disclose the next bit of information to them…

"And guys, there's sort of, um, something else."

They looked at her and she took a deep breath before her next words.

"David and I… I think there's something there."

"Like… what?" Andrea asked, her eyebrows rising in surprise.

"Like… I _think_ we might be attracted to each other." She bit her lower lip, hating that James was there for this. "Kind of in a big way."

"In what big way?" James spoke softly in that deep voice and she hated that he did.

"Um…"

"Lily, spit it out." Cassie said, urging her redhead friend to continue.

"Well, in the way that he and I kissed in his office after I accepted the case."

Silence.

Cassie clapped her hands together once. "Well, I guess that answers my question about whether you can stand being in the same room with him."

OooOooO

_A/N: _Oh. Yeah, if it seemed like it was too sudden, it's because it was. I'm not intending for this to be a particularly long story so I manipulate when things are supposed to happen… besides, shock value.

More to come!


	4. Chapter Four

**Author:** WhtChoc

**Title:** Baby Mama Love

**Author's Note:** Wow… what has it been? Almost four months? Hopefully, this story is short enough for some of you to go back and read what you have forgotten. Do I even have any readers interested in this story anymore? I certainly hope so!

I wasn't even going to leave an Author's Note on this chapter but decided to anyways. Reason why? Going back through some of the reviews, many of you were shocked that Lily kissed David so soon and I have to tell you two things: number one, I was going for shock value but number two, I must warn everyone that not everything you read now is what it seems. Because this story is destined to be shorter (only about fifteen to twenty chapters) events will come a lot sooner. I apologize also for the abruptness of Lily's revelation to her friends but you'll soon see. You all will soon see _why_.

Oh, and thank you for both your support on this story _and_ Runaway Love. I appreciate it!

**Chapter Four**

"_David and I… I think there's something there."_

"_Like… what?" Andrea asked, her eyebrows rising in surprise. _

"_Like… I think we might be attracted to each other." She bit her lower lip, hating that James was there for this. "Kind of in a big way."_

"_In what big way?" James spoke softly in that deep voice and she hated that he did._

"_Um…"_

"_Lily, spit it out." Cassie said, urging her redhead friend to continue. _

"_Well, in the way that he and I kissed in his office after I accepted the case."_

_Silence._

_Cassie clapped her hands together once. "Well, I guess that answers my question about whether you can stand being in the same room with him." _

_OooOooO_

And from there, it had all gone downhill.

Lily had carefully taken into account that her group of friends had been together since the middle of seventh year at Hogwarts and she knew of everyone's attitudes and behaviors. Because they had been family to her, she also knew that each member of the small "family" were prone to believe that they each had a _special_ say in Lily's life, even more so now than ever since the birth of Harry. Everyone always wanted what was best for the newest, youngest member that they sometimes forgot that Lily _also_ needed to make decisions based upon what she thought was best for both her and her son.

Having _sex_ with the father of her baby the night he returned from his case warranted a degree of concern, a slight touch of shock and a smidgen bit of questioning of motivation and feeling but nothing too major. Because it was James and everyone wanted her to be in love with him. _Kissing_ her boss on his first day after he just offered her a high-risk job _automatically_ warranted a serious emotional problem that needed to be examined in every light it needing to be sent to the Supreme Court at the Ministry before being handled by the dementors at _Azkaban_ didn't seem to be a problem because David wasn't James. _Really_, Lily didn't see it being that bad.

And who took it the hardest, the worst?

The one and only Sirius Black, who would forever be devoted to his fellow Marauder above all else. That wouldn't bother Lily so much if it hadn't been for the fact that over the last three months that James had been absent in Harry's life, Sirius had expressed concern and anger that his best friend wasn't around to be a father for his son. Especially since Sirius remembered his own father being such a bastard. But all of those feelings toward James for Lily flew out the window the minute Sirius realized that his lifelong dream of James and Lily living happily ever after _together_ flew out the window the minute she decided to give in to the slight but growing crush she had developed in seconds upon meeting her boss.

After a near-duel between her and Black, the gang decided it was best to separate for the night, to gather their thoughts and return the next day with a refreshed look at the situation. Everyone had their opinions and when the time was right, they would put them all on the table and decide as a group how Lily should move forward. That was how it was done and that was how it would always be done.

Lily paced the length of her bedroom, her hands fidgeting and itching to do something besides rest calmly by her side. After a few moments of more pacing, she finally grabbed her cloak and wand, muttered a few words and disapparated shortly after.

OooOooO

"Lily."

_Crap._

Lily inhaled, slowly turning to the familiar voice that called her name. "Hi… James."

He was frowning down at her when she turned but when they locked gazes; the frown slipped from his features and his face was a blank mask. That was how he had left her apartment earlier. His eyes were the only welcoming feature that warmed her insides and even gradually as they shifted over her face, they became distant and cool.

"What are you doing out here so late?" James asked.

She clenched her jaw under the severity of his tone and focused on what her answer would be. "I couldn't sleep. Guess I'm nervous about working on the case tomorrow…"

He was silent for a long time and she wondered if he was even still standing there. He was and she let out a sigh of relief. Out of all the reactions she had imagined him having to her kissing another man, giving her the cold shoulder was not one of them.

True, James had skillfully learned to mask his feelings with Auror training and he was certainly one of the best young active Aurors in the Ministry but… she also knew James better than most. He was an emotional creature and, any chance to show his passion for something he truly cared about, he grabbed at it. And Lily could deeply, in vivid detail, remember his passion for _her_. And judging by the steady pounding in her chest at having him be so near, she was willing to bet that passion hadn't gone away just with the simple knowledge that she kissed another man. It had to still be there.

"What are you doing out here so late?" Lily repeated his question, clearing her throat and hugging her cloak closer to her body for heat.

"Patrol duties." James answered coolly. "I still have those, remember?"

Lily couldn't help herself. She refused to be talked to _that_ way. "Well, not really. You see, it's been so long since you've been around that I've sort of allowed myself to forget your _duties_."

"And have you forgotten yours?" James asked evenly, clenching his jaw tightly and rotating his body so that it brushed slightly against hers.

She shivered. But not from the cold. "What's happened to you? You're much different than the James I used to know."

And he _was_ different. She had recognized it the second she saw him standing in her apartment that first night. Something in him had changed dramatically and she was dying to know what it was. Her pride, though, was keeping her from shaking and demanding of him what it was so instead, she resorted to double-meaning word wars with him like the one she was having with him right then.

"You mean, when you're standing so close to me, I don't melt into tiny pieces of love?"

Lily inhaled sharply and shoved him away from her in anger. "No, I mean, you're cold, rude, and a _stone_."

"A stone?" James let out a laugh that sent chills down her spine. Why was he being so mean to her? This couldn't all be about the kiss she shared with David… "What is that supposed to mean, O Holier than Thou Queen?"

"You used to have more heart." Lily whipped her hair behind her shoulder and took a few steps back, shaking her head at him in disappointment. "Now, you're just all about business. Look at you. It's almost midnight and you're out here in the freezing cold because you have patrol duties? Time used to be you'd be over at Sirius's or off somewhere doing something _fun_. And the fact that you won't just tell me why you're back early just proves to me that we're not the same people to each other anymore."

James didn't answer her but his eyes were burning holes in her forehead now.

"At least when I used to stand close to you and you _did_ melt into tiny pieces of love, you were friendlier and had heart. Now you're just the kind of Auror you swore you'd never become and I feel sorry for you." She turned on her heel and began walking away from him. "Have a good night, James."

OooOooO

"—plan is to just request the files of all those who are registered half-breed werewolves and contact them via Floo Network. Now, I know what you're thinking… those networks are constantly being watched but I figure if we have an important enough reason, the authorities down there would be more than willing to grant us privacy. Now, I'll need to speak with Harrison but in the meantime, Lily, I need you to… Lily? Lily…?"

She was vaguely aware of a hand waving in her face and she forced herself to snap out of her daze. She glanced at David with an apologetic half-smile before rubbing her eyes and saying quietly, "I'm sorry. Wow, it's the first day on the case and I'm already—"

David shook his head and leaned against his desk with his arms folded. "No, you look like you have a lot on your mind. Anything you want to say?"

Lily inhaled slowly and gave a slight shake of her head. "I just—I don't know if I can do this."

He stared back at her with a puzzled expression on his face. "The case?"

"Yes. Maybe… not." Lily sighed.

"I don't understand." David said. "Yesterday, you wanted the job and you are perfect for it by the way. Now today… what? You don't want it anymore?"

"No, I do." Lily insisted. "I do very much. It's just—after yesterday… with our, you know… I just don't think it's a good idea for us to be working together so much, especially since you're my _boss_. It's just so unprofessional."

"Lily, I honestly didn't think you were the type to make such a big deal about something that happened like yesterday." He frowned. "I mean, you were excited and nervous and happy and scared and one thing I actually understand about women is that when they're all those things, anything is bound to happen. It's no big deal, really."

"I don't think you understand." Lily said, shaking her head and burying her face in her hands. "I didn't just… I didn't just kiss you because I was feeling all those things."

There was confused silence and then, "Why did you kiss me?"

She began to shake her head while her face was still buried in her hands. "Oh, this is so _embarrassing_!"

She felt his hands prying hers off her face so that he could see her clearly. He looked genuinely concerned and _too_ good-looking, it was almost _evil_. "Don't be embarrassed. What is it?"

She took a deep breath before saying in a rush, "I kissed you because I think I'm really attracted to you. And Gods, if you laugh at me, I will hex you regardless of whether you're my boss or if you fire me from this case—"

David began to chuckle. "What about from the Office?"

She glared up at him. "You wouldn't."

He simply shook his head. "I wouldn't. Besides, I think your brilliance has warranted you tenure in this office. I think if I fired you, Harrison would fire me so you see, your career and life deeply affect _mine_. More than you even know."

Lily was a little confused by that statement but decided other matters were more important. "So what kind of bloke are you?"

He raised his eyebrows. "Pardon?"

"Are you the kind of bloke that forgets a girl ever said she likes you? The kind that leaves a girl hanging? What are you?" Lily questioned, crossing her legs at her ankles.

David laughed and shrugged. "I don't know."

"Are you kidding? This is the brilliant diplomat that came all the way from Australia to take my job? Next please…"

"I'm neither one of those." David said, suddenly serious. "The truth is, I'm attracted to you too. But I don't think _you're_ the type of woman to begin an office romance, especially when that office romance is with someone who is your boss and who is virtually a stranger and who already has so many people eyeing her every move and decision."

Lily frowned at his insight. "How did you reach that assessment?"

"Lily, I have a baby sister. Well, she's not so baby anymore but I still call her that." David said quietly. "She went to some other school in the Americas and found some half-wit who she thought she'd spend the rest of her life with. He got her pregnant and left her. So, she was a single mom raising a bastard. And everywhere she went, people always watched, always judging her because she had a child with no father, no dad."

Lily watched as he suddenly dug through his cloak. He pulled out a Muggle wallet and took out a photo. Lily leaned forward to see a moving picture of a girl, barely nineteen years old and holding a toddler who looked to be about three. The girl, David's sister, was smiling at her daughter but Lily could see the exhaustion and sadness in the girl's eyes. It was so clear and obvious that Lily gasped in surprise. It almost physically hurt her to look at the young girl.

David nodded, his eyes somber. "I know something about women being single moms."

Lily shook her head. "I'm sorry about your sister. But to tell you the truth, that's not really me. I mean, I have the support and love from my friends and—and Harry does have a father who is more or less around."

"James Potter, right?"

Lily wasn't surprised that he knew of James. The former Marauder had really begun to make an impact in the Magical world around him. Higher officials held deep respect for James and the Minister even personally requested his help from time to time. It was something Lily was always proud to hear about.

"Didn't he just return from a mission gone sour?" David asked, frowning.

Lily nodded, quietly.

"How are you handling his return? He was gone for quite a long time. He can't know Harry that much, can he?"

Lily shifted in her seat. "It's not something I really want to talk about right now. It's complicated. We have a history and… it's a _long_ story. One that's probably very, very uninteresting and boring and…"

David nodded, understanding. "I get it. You don't need to lie."

Lily let out a short laugh before clapping her hand to her mouth. When he gave her a strange look, she smiled guiltily. "I'm sorry. That just sounded funny."

"So, Ms. Evans, what are we going to do about this thing between us?"

She immediately sobered. "I don't think there's anything we can do. You're my boss, I work for you, and we're at the beginning of a dangerous case. I think it's best if we just… leave it at that. Besides, like I said, it's completely unprofessional."

"Lily, you walked in ten minutes late yesterday when Harrison specifically requested that everyone be here on the hour. You insulted me four different times during our first conversation and let's not forget we ended our first day with a very nice, very unforgettable kiss. I think we're past trying to be _professional_."

She inhaled sharply because he stepped closer toward her. She cleared her throat and swallowed before finding the words to answer him. "My friends. James. Harry. The reasons why we can't, _won't_ work."

"I'm good with people. I can get them to like me very quickly."

Lily shifted in her chair as his hands came to rest on either side of her. "James won't ever like you."

"I don't need him to like me in order to get to you."

She turned her head as he leaned forward. "I have a son. He's my first priority. My number one."

David smiled at her, inching toward her face. "I have no interest in taking up your first priority or your number one. Besides, I consider myself to be rather talented with babies."

Lily sighed, feeling his hot breath against her cheek. "Then I guess you're in."

OooOooO

"Lily, are you sure? Have you really thought this through? He is your boss."

Everyone's eyes settled on the redhead sitting alone on the single couch with her feet curled beneath her bottom. She held a hot mug of tea in both hands and sipped with a drawn out silence. Earlier that day, she and David decided to play out their attraction for one another without any unnatural decisions to pause, stop, or excel what they both considered the inevitable.

The truth was, Lily hadn't felt so good about deciding to be with someone since she had been in her intense relationship with James. And so far, there was no pressing decisions to separate because of jobs and obligations, no men or women persistently showing up to drive them apart, and no mysterious happenings that seemed to cause them to distrust one another.

And for the first time in a long while, Lily revealed all of that to her friends with no feeling of nerves or regret. It felt great to be able to be so honest to the people she most cared for.

"And what about Harry?" Sirius asked, an edge to his voice. "Have you forgotten how confusing it's going to be for him?"

"Sirius, he's four months old." Cassie rolled her eyes. "I'm sure confusion isn't even a part of his daily needs. He'll be fine."

"You know what I mean." Sirius answered, motioning his arms in frustration. "This guy comes in from halfway across the world, somehow manages to sweep Lily off her feet and now we're all supposed to bite our tongues and wait for this to pass through? No… I care about the situation too much. I care about Harry too much to do that."

"We all care about Harry, Sirius," Remus said, shaking his head. "That's not even a question but when it comes to one of our best friend's happiness, we have to let her do what's right and good for her and her child."

"Remus is right." Peter nodded, his gaze meeting Lily's. "The days of us believing we can change your mind simply because we're your best friends and we have pointless meetings like these should be over."

"What about Prongs?" Sirius suddenly asked, nudging his longtime friend in the ribs. "He is Harry's father."

"The word 'father' is a fluid term for James." Andrea replied softly. "No offense, James."

"Guys, I appreciate your concern." Lily said, breathing in slowly. "And I admit it… it's definitely not like me to jump into something like this so fast, especially with Harry involved, but you guys don't know how great I feel when David is around me. It's the best feeling ever. He makes me feel wonderful and cherished and… I know, I know, I've only known him for a little while—"

"Two days." James interrupted and Lily's eyes quickly met his. Her stomach held butterflies because of the intensity shown in his hazel orbs. She swallowed and tried to slow her heart rate back to normal as he continued, "You've only known him for two days."

There was something about his tone that hurt her and she immediately felt the urge to hurt him back so she said, "That's funny because I remember you knowing Rachel for only two _hours_."

The minute the words left her mouth she regretted them and quickly dropped her eyes in shame. She could feel the anger and hurt emanating from James already and hear the stunned silence from her friends. That was low and completely unnecessary, irrelevant and she already wished she could take it back. But she couldn't. She only glanced up when she saw his shadow stand slowly and leave the room.

Lily sat there, aware that her friends were wide-eyed and shocked by her malicious words, before standing up and muttering, "I'm going to go apologize."

OooOooO

She found him upstairs in Harry's bedroom, watching the four-month old sleep peacefully in his crib. She walked closer toward James, the first and only man she had ever fallen in love with and father to her beautiful son, and placed a hand softly on his back. She felt his heat burn her hand but she didn't withdraw. Instead she pressed it more firmly against his back.

"I'm sorry." She heard herself whisper. "I shouldn't have said that. I know you weren't yourself when Rachel approached you."

James turned to her after a long silence. "I'm disappointed in you."

She stared at him, shocked for a few seconds before frowning and asking, "Disappointed in me? Why are you disappointed in me?"

"You sound surprised."

Lily gaped at him and withdrew her hand. "No kidding?"

"Don't be upset." James rolled his eyes.

"And how would you like me to be?" Lily asked, her voice rising. "I come up here to apologize to you because I realized what I said was hurtful and _wrong_, and you stand here and tell me you're disappointed in me, James. Why?"

"Because I don't deny what you said last night." James answered. "I am changed but I'm still me—"

"—Which has nothing to do with _me_." Lily interrupted, shaking her head.

"Yes, it does." James insisted. "Lily, I still have feelings for you."

She felt her heart rate speed up and she closed her mouth abruptly. That was the last thing she expected to hear from him.

"You have to understand that there are things that are happening now and that _will_ happen that you can't control, but I want you to remember that I still have feelings for you and I always will—"

Lily shook her head out of confusion. "James, what are you running on about?"

"—Regardless of whatever happens, okay? And I want you to know that before you go blame yourself. And you say you won't but I know you will because of your heart. But I don't want you to feel that way so I'm saying to you now that I love you no matter what happens, do you hear me?"

His hands were on her shoulders now and his eyes were penetrating hers. She wanted him to look away from her, to stop looking at her so intensely, so passionately. But, on the other hand, she _yearned_ for his passion again. Wasn't that what she had fought him on last night? Well, here it was, right in front of her. What was she going to do?

"Lily?"

Her arms suddenly wrapped around his neck and she pressed herself against him tightly, moving her lips over his aggressively. She could feel his surprise and then—oh Gods, his passion and his want for her. All of it. For the second time since he returned, she felt all of him, inside and out by just their kiss. And she felt him press closer into her before he pulled away suddenly, putting distance between them.

"I see it hasn't completely taken you over…" James muttered but more to himself than to her.

Lily wasn't going to lie to herself. She definitely felt a sense of loss when she and James stopped kissing but reality suddenly set in. She remembered who both of them were and the things that kept them apart. History and a whole world of intensity. She wanted him, would always want him… but she had a child, _their_ child, and she had to start down on a road that would grant her and Harry a happy, fulfilling personal life. And James didn't seem to be looking for happy or fulfilling.

But maybe, David was.

"I have to go to bed." Lily blinked rapidly, turning toward the door. "Please don't do anything to wake Harry. He's usually a heavy sleeper but with you being so unfamiliar to him, he may feel a little insecure."

She honestly didn't know if she was talking about Harry or herself.

"Lily."

She stopped at the doorway but didn't turn around.

"I'm going to get to know my son well. He's going to know whom I am and I'm going to make sure he has everything he wants and needs. He is going to have a real dad, Lily." James said quietly but with such conviction, she closed her eyes briefly under the pressure. "Know that well. Even with this new bloke around, I am Harry's dad."

"James, I'm glad you want to be but—you're not his dad yet. It takes time and I honestly don't know how long you're back for this time."

OooOooO

_A/N:_ Kind of an awkward chapter but it's going to get better. I haven't written for this story in a while and I was kind of in a gutter and this was an attempt to get out.

I will review so much faster this time if I have great reviews to set me along


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